China News 1 May 2020
International
15 years in jail for journalist. Chen Jieren was arrested after posting articles on his site accusing local officials of corruption. The Chinese Human Rights Defenders watchdog said Chen's conviction was "apparently to punish him for his political speech”. The group noted that China was ranked 177th out of 180 on Reporters Without Borders’ 2020 “World Press Freedom Index.” AFP, 1 May, Human Rights Defenders
The Economist carries a long article on the search for the origins of COVID-19. It argues that getting to the origin of the virus “needs a degree of open co-operation that America is now degrading with accusations and reductions in funding, and that China has taken steps to suppress at source. That suppression has done nothing to help the country; indeed, by supporting speculation, it may yet harm it.” The US Director of National Intelligence has ruled out the idea the virus was man-made. Economist, 29 April & Director of National Intelligence
WHO not included in Beijing’s COVID-19 investigation despite requests. Dr Gauden Galea, the WHO’s Representative in China, said the organisation had not yet been invited to be part of China’s own investigations into the origins of the virus, despite the organisation’s requests to be included. Sky News, 30 April.
The DCMS Select Committee heard evidence yesterday about Beijing’s use of misinformation. Professor Philip Howard of the Oxford Internet Institute said the Chinese government “tend to respond with misinformation by volume… they will call up 100,000 fake accounts.” He said: “They want to make sure we… don’t notice how the Chinese government repressed the original medical research about the nature of the crisis”. Parliamentlive.tv
MERICS reports on how the Chinese government is trying to build a cadre of supporters online. MERICS Blog
Buzzfeed reports that African people in China who complain about discrimination are being harassed by the police and being made to delete videos. Buzzfeed, 29 April
Australia will support Taiwan's return to the World Health Organisation as an observer, four years after it was ousted. Sydney Morning Herald, 30 April
Hong Kong protests around May Day. Hong Kong’s Labour Party are demanding the immediate release of their vice-chairman Mak Tak-ching who was arrested. RTHK, 1 May. The Wall Street Journal reports on pro-democracy protesters return to the streets. WSJ, 29 April. Footage has emerged of riot police manhandling young protesters during clashes. Twitter
Cyber attacks on UK politicians critical of Communist Party. The Daily Mail reports that Tom Tugendhat MP and others have been attacked by a ‘pretty sophisticated hacker' who, among other things, is trying to impersonate him to his contacts. Daily Mail, 1 May
Economy
Entire UK order of 250 Chinese ventilators ditched over danger to lives. Doctors found all 250 breathing kits were so badly made they feared they could kill patients. Guardian, 30 April
Why Japan is reshoring production. Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga talks about their reshoring strategy: “In the case of surgical masks, for instance, 70% to 80% of what we have here are made in China. Even with factories in Japan running at full throttle, we still had a mask shortage…. We need to end heavy reliance on a single country for a particular product or material. For things that are essential to our everyday life, we need to bring production back to Japan or diversify” Nikkei Asian Review, 24 April
The Chinese government has received a wave of applications for debt relief from crisis-hit countries included in the “Belt and Road Initiative.” FT, 30 April
Axios reports on tech sector concerns about US-China “decoupling” Axios, 27 April
Long reads
Recently expelled from China, New York Times journalist Raymond Zhong reflects on his time in the country trying to seek out the voices of ordinary people. New York Times, 29 April